


Welcome to the Hellmouth

by MusicLover500



Series: Rose Tyler: Vampire Slayer [1]
Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Buffy The Vampire Slayer Fusion, Alternate Universe - Fusion, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-24
Updated: 2015-09-11
Packaged: 2018-04-16 22:24:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4642320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MusicLover500/pseuds/MusicLover500
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>‘In every generation there is a chosen one. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons, and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer.’ Called as the latest Slayer, Rose Tyler struggles to defend the small town of Gallifrey with help from her group of friends, Watcher, and a mysterious stranger known as ‘the Doctor’.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Mouth of Hell (Part I)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This will take up the main bulk of my time, as I’ve put a lot of careful thought and consideration in plotting out the different ‘episodes’ and what the main story arc should be.
> 
> This is in the style of Buffy: the Vampire Slayer; however, I won’t be following the exact plot for this series. The main story arc for this one and the sequel (should enough people be interested) will be similar to the ones in Buffy but the ‘episodes’ leading up to it for the most part will be different. The main pairing for this (and the rest of the series) is Nine/Rose, with various others occurring later.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing; just taking some creative liberties with my two favorite shows ever.
> 
> Notes: Unfortunately, this is kind of a long and a bit of a filler chapter—it’s setting things up and trying to explain things for people who may have never seen Buffy, though Rose does make her first friends in Gallifrey and meets her new Watcher by the end of it. The pace will (hopefully) start to pick up after this.
> 
> If anyone wants to beta this I would be forever grateful. Seriously, it would mean the world to me.

 

Mouth of Hell (Part I):

　

A series of faces assaulted her, flashing rapidly in front, leaving her only enough to time to briefly glimpse them before they were lost. All women or girls; all close to her age or slightly younger.

 _The dream shifted. Now a sharply dressed man stood before her, a cruel smirk gracing his lips before his face morphed into one of nightmares, complete with golden eyes and pointed canines._ Vampire, _her mind registered, just as the man—vampire—began advancing…_

The shrill piercing of an alarm clock tore Rose Tyler from her dreaming. Groggily, the young blonde woman reached across to her nightstand and slammed the snooze button—only to have the thing shatter to pieces and fall to the floor.

Startled, she bolted upright, the lingering haziness of sleep vanishing as the remains of what had been her alarm clock hit the floor with a muffled _thunk_.

Inwardly, she groaned. She had—once again—forgotten the sheer strength she now possessed, courtesy of a very unexpected, very unwelcome gift.

It had begun sometime after her 18th birthday. Before then, nothing interesting ever happened to her, with the exception of the time she briefly dropped out to blindly follow a good for nothing boy; she was just Rose Tyler, girl from the Powell Estates, struggling to carve a successful future for herself.　

But the morning of her birthday, she had woken up feeling different. Her suspicions were confirmed when, as she ran towards the shop she worked at, she was able to run all the way there without losing breath. It was shortly after that the dreams started.　

She had fallen asleep that night almost as soon as she’d lain down, gratefully welcoming the blackness. The peacefulness was disturbed when she suddenly found herself—without any ounce of willpower—living what felt like a thousand lives, in every time period. She was always running, always fighting the same things: creatures that Rose had always been told were just fantasy, nightmares to scare children. And they always ended with her death at the hands of one of the creatures.

This continued for awhile, and each time Rose would find herself unable to fall back to sleep, too frightened over _why_ she kept having these specific dreams. Her work began to suffering until she was facing the threat of being fired, only adding to the stress she was under.

Just when she felt she couldn’t take another day of what her life had become, she met a man whom was able to explain everything to her.

He had been elderly—in his sixties, maybe seventies, the blonde had reckoned—and he had a very fatherly, grandfatherly vibe about him. Not the person she thought would hold the answers she’d sought

"Rose Tyler?" He had asked, as she was busy setting new clothes out for customers.

"Yeah?" She’d answered, spinning around to find him standing behind her. He smiled at her.

"May I have a word with you? If you can spare one, that is," he continued, noticing she was busy.

Rose hesitated; what would a stranger want to talk to her about? And how did he even know her name? But he didn’t seem threatening at all, so she was willing to take a leap of faith and reply, "I actually get off in a few minutes. Could we talk then?"

The man had waited for her outside (not helping Rose’s wariness anyway) as she finished. "What did you want to speak to me about?" She asked when she had finally joined him.

"Have you been experiencing…odd things lately? Dreams, perhaps? Or you can suddenly do things that should be impossible?" He began.

That had made the young woman become rooted to the spot. Did he know what was going on with her? "H-how—?" She managed to get out

The elderly man smiled kindly at her, though she noticed there was sadness in it as well. "Then it’s true," he said softly, so soft she barely heard it. "I’m Wilfred Mott," he continued, introducing himself for the first time, "and there’s no easy way to tell this to you, I’m afraid my dear. You’re the latest Slayer."

Nothing had been the same for Rose after that moment, especially after learning what it meant to be the Slayer and what a Slayer even was. Apparently, for as long as there’s been history, there has always been a Slayer—one girl chosen out of each generation after the previous dies to protect the world from various forces of darkness, including vampires and demons.

Each Slayer had her Watcher; someone appointed by this thing called the Watcher’s Council (which Rose still knew very little about) to train and prepare the Slayer for what her life now was. Wilfred Mott had been appointed as hers, and she couldn’t have asked for anyone else once she had come to terms with the fact she was now technically a superhero of sorts and probably wouldn’t live to thirty.

Unlike she had feared, he had treated her like she was still a person instead of just a tool. "You’re still a person, Rose," he had told her once she’d admitted it to him after one of their training sessions. "You still feel, still care, still have the right to choose your own future. No matter what, remember that."

As she took the trip down memory lane, Rose felt her heart clench as she recalled every single moment she had spent with Wilfred. He had been like a father figure to her—the only one she had ever known, as Pete Tyler had died in a hit-and-run incident when Rose had been just a baby.

She had a feeling the feeling was mutual, as the last time she had ever seen him he had been holding off a vampire with almost nothing to give her enough to time to set fire to her university’s dining hall to kill the rest of the nest. She didn’t find out until afterwards that he had willingly did that, knowing he more than likely wouldn’t make it out alive.

Unbidden, the guilt she always carried with her rose up inside, threatening to engulf her as tears pricked her eyes. It had been a few months since Wilfred had died, and it still haunted her.

Shortly after the incident, she swore of Slaying and tried to repair the relationship with her mother, which had begun falling apart especially after she’d gotten expelled over the fire. Things between her and Jackie Tyler seemed back to the way they had been before Rose had been called as the Slayer. So far, she was doing a good job of keeping up her vow of putting her Slayer days behind her, least she lead to anyone else’s deaths.

The former-Slayer felt guilty about completely abandoning her duties as she felt like she was insulting Wilfred’s memory, but his word that her future was her own gave her small comfort.　

"Rose! Are ya up yet?" Jackie Tyler’s voice drifted from the hallway, breaking the blonde out of her memories.

Remembering today was her first day at her new university, Rose quickly got up and threw on a pair of jeans, hoodie, and pulled her hair into a ponytail before grabbing her bag and exiting her room.　

Navigating the boxes still stacked in the hallway, she grabbed a piece of toast her mother handed her and gave her mother a chaste kiss on the cheek in thanks before waving goodbye and heading off down the street.　

The small town of Gallifrey was eerily quiet in the morning; the only sounds Rose could hear were the sounds of her trainers against the sidewalk and the birds chirping as the first rays of the rising sun poked above the horizon.　

It was peaceful, but to someone who was used to the never-ending noise of London it was unnerving.　

Her and her mother had moved here about a week or so ago, when much to Rose’s shock they received part of the money Wilfred had left in his will. Turns out her Watcher had been quite rich due to his high salary pay from the Watcher’s Council, and he had stated in his will that a third was to go to Rose, and the rest split between an unnamed son and daughter.　

The money had been more than enough to leave the Estates and buy a decent sized house in the small town of Gallifrey, which was the only one with a university willing to accept Rose as the others apparently feared she would burn down their dining hall.　

 _Not unless a nest of vampires happens to have chosen to make it their new home,_ she thought as she walked. _Or any other thing that poses a threat to the world._ The local university was a good distance—at least a mile, if not more—from her house, but she didn’t mind walking—it at least kept her in shape.　

Slowly, the town seemed to come alive as the blonde continued her walk. A couple jogged past her, waving in greeting; an old man stopped to check his mailbox; a couple of cars carrying people heading to work whizzed by.　

She glanced down at her watch every so often to gauge how much time she had before classes would start. So far, she had about half an hour left, and judging by the area, was already close to the university.　

Sure enough, within the next couple of minutes Rose caught her first glimpse of Gallifrey University.　

It was decent sized, although definitely on the small side, with quite a few courtyards separating the various buildings. In comparison to her previous university, it was quite tiny, but it seemed more…homely.　

Hoping she could make it through the year with little to no incidents, she took a deep breath to calm the nerves and made her way towards what she hoped was the main building.

　

~*~

 

　

Within the first ten minutes of searching for the headmaster’s office, Rose took her statement about finding Gallifrey University tiny back. She had looked down various hallways and found no sign of the office.　

The fellow students around her were no help, as all they did was outright stare at her when she walked by, like she was some sort of novelty. Which, considering how small the town was in general, was a very likely possibility.　

"Are you, uh, looking for something?" A voice asked behind her, with a twinge of nervousness.　

Spinning around, she found the speaker was a young man around her age, with short sandy blonde hair, hazel eyes, and a slightly prominent nose.　

Remembering his question, she quickly replied, "Yeah. Do you know where I could find the headmaster’s office?"　

"Sure. Just go down this hallway; it should be the fifth door on the right," he told her.　

"Thanks," she told him gratefully, smiling slightly at him before turning to follow his directions. The sound of footfalls behind her made her stop and tense out of instinct. She half turned to see it was the same young man whom had just been kind enough to tell her how to get to the main office.　

"I figured I could go with you," he said hurriedly. "I need to drop something off there anyway."　

She smiled at him—one of her own, tongue touched smiles this time—and continued down the hallway, this time with the man, who was quickly shaping up to be her new friend it looked like.　

"I’m Rose Tyler, by the way," she said as they walked towards their destination.　

"Rory Williams," the sandy haired man replied. "I moved her a few years ago from Leadworth, so I know what’s it like to be the new kid."　

"Really?"　

He nodded. "They stop after awhile," he said as they finally reached the office, and she knew he meant the incessant staring. "Uh, the headmaster’s office is there-" he pointed to a heavy oak door with a plague on it that had ‘I. Chesterton’ written on it in sharp black letters. "-and he should be in there. And probably expecting you, knowing him."　

She nodded, giving him a smile in thanks, and turned to head towards the door when she heard Rory call her name.　

"Oh, and watch out for Madam Kovarian. She’s the deputy headmistress, and she hates everyone—especially the students."

"I will," Rose replied, turning away and crossing the distance to the door.　

Surprisingly, Ian Chesterton wasn’t that harsh, considering the circumstances involving her expulsion.　

"All I’m going to say is, please do try and not burn anything down here," he told her as they finished their meeting and he passed some papers over to her—which she noticed, thankfully, included a map as well as her schedule.　

"I won’t," she replied, exiting the office and hoping she could keep that promise.　

As she headed towards the door leading to the hallway, a woman stepped deliberately into her path. Forced to halt, Rose glanced up to see who was blocking her way.　

The woman looked to be in her forties, possibly early fifties, with red hair pulled into a bun on the top of her head. She wore a sharp black business suit, and an eye-patch covered her right eye.　

"So," she began, looking at Rose like she was a very disgusting, unwelcome bug. "You are the new transfer student."　

Almost immediately she knew this had to be the Madame Kovarian Rory had warned her about. Before Rose could get a word in, the woman had continued.　

"I don’t know—or care—what Mr. Chesterton told you, but troublemakers are unwelcome here. If I ever get wind you are even thinking about trying to cause some, I will personally make sure things are very…unpleasant," she added, the cruel smirk on her face leaving little to imagination about what ‘unpleasant’ things she had planned.　

Obviously feeling she had made her point, the older woman brushed past the blonde and disappeared further into the main office.　

Mentally thanking Rory for warning her about that woman, she was finally able to reach the door leading to the hallway. Pushing it open, she opened her messenger bag to stuff in the papers Mr. Chesterton had given her—only to find herself literally running into someone.　

The impact sent Rose’s bag crashing to the floor, spilling the contents everywhere.　

"I’m sorry," she blurted out, right around the same time the other person did. Glancing up, she saw it was yet another young man she had run into. Only, this one had short, soft-looking black hair and dark skin.　

"Here, let me help," he offered, kneeling down to help her pick her stuff up. The two hurriedly lampooned her stuff into a makeshift pile and put it back in her bag. While Rose was attempting to put it all back into the bag at once, she missed the man picking up the spare stake she always carried with her. "This is…interesting," he said suddenly, causing her to look up.　

Immediately her eyes widened when she saw he held the stake in his hand. "Uh, yeah," she stammered, all but yanking it out of his grasp as she quickly shoved it into her bag, "I use it for, uh, self-defense. Can’t be too careful."　

For a second, he looked like he wasn’t going to believe her, before he said, "Most people would use other things for self-defense—a bit sturdier things, you know?"　

"I’m not most people," she replied. _If only he knew the truth of that statement,_ her mind whispered.　

"Mickey! I’ve been—Rose?" A familiar voice called from further down the hallway. The pair on the floor turned to see Rory heading towards them.　

"Rory!" The blonde greeted.　

"You two already know each other?" The other man—Mickey—asked.　

Rory nodded. "I helped her find her way to Chesterton’s office earlier," he replied.　

Mickey opened his mouth to presumably say something, but just then a bell chose to ring, signaling classes were about to start for the day.　

"I should go," Rose said quickly, biding the two men goodbye and setting off towards her first class.

　

~*~

 

　

The first half of the day went by quickly, with Rose finding herself enjoying her classes—especially the two art classes she had signed up for to coincide with her major.　

When lunch rolled around, the blonde found herself wandering the courtyards, looking for a free spot with any friendly-looking people. She was hoping to be able to find either Rory or Mickey and sit with them, as so far they had been the only outwardly friendly people she had met.

"Rose!" Rory’s voice called above the din. Hardly daring to believe her luck, the young blonde tracked him to a table off to the side, occupied by three individuals including Rory. She recognized one of the other two as Mickey, but the pretty brunette was a stranger to her.　

"Way to go Rory, you managed to get the new girl before the Bitchy Duo!" The young brunette cheered when Rose sat down next to Mickey. Rory’s cheeks turned a faint pink at the woman’s words.　

"Clara, this is Rose Tyler," he introduced quickly. "Rose, this is Clara Oswald."　

"It’ll be nice having another girl around," Clara said as way of greeting.　

"Oi!" Mickey said. "What are you trying to say?"　

"I love you guys, but there are some things a fellow girl would understand better than you two…" the brunette began.　

Rose watched their banter with slight envy. Back in London, her and Shareen had been like that—best friends who loved to banter—before Rose had been called as the Slayer and everything from her life before had begun to fall apart. Including her friendship with Shareen.　

 _The past is the past,_ she told herself firmly. Her ears picked up the sounds of footsteps drawing nearer—heels, if the sound they made on the concrete was any indication—and almost immediately Clara and Mickey’s bantering seized.　

"Well, if it isn’t the Trio of Losers," a voice said scornfully behind Rose, laced with a prominent French accent.　

Turning around, she saw two blondes standing behind her, each insanely gorgeous—and they knew it, judging by their posture. One held herself like she was the Queen of England herself, while the other just looked dignified—like she was someone of importance.　

"More like four now," the other blonde—who looked like a stick, if sticks could be humans—added.　

The first blonde who had spoken, the one who carried herself like she was some sort of queen, stared at Rose, running an eye over her critically. The young woman already knew what the other blonde was thinking, judging by the disgust at Rose’s dyed blonde hair.

"No one mentioned the new girl was a chav," she stated, having finished with her inspection.　

Outrage immediately coursed through Rose like white-hot fire, setting every nerve on end. She’d been called many things—stupid, good for nothing, even a chav or slut a couple of times—but to hear it from someone who had literally just met her and knew nothing about her was about the young woman’s snapping point.　

Before she could do anything more than fume, a Scottish voice called from behind the two blonde women, "What’s going on here?"　

Six pairs of eyes snapped towards the newcomer. The speaker was an older man at least in fifties, with short silver hair and piercing blue eyes. He wore a black coat with red lining that vaguely reminded Rose of something a magician might wear.　

"Nothing," the two blonde strangers said quickly, giving the man nauseatingly sweet fake smiles before walking past the table Rose and others were sitting at and disappearing from their line of vision.　

The man gave a barely audible snort and muttered, "Yeah, and I’m the Queen of England."　

Rose couldn’t help the laugh that managed to escape her at the man’s comment, causing her new friends to suddenly give her strange looks. Quickly she realized she must have been the only one to hear what the silver-haired newcomer had said.　

Her laugh also didn’t escape the man’s notice, as his gaze zeroed in on her, and it remained on her even as he passed by them and followed the general direction of the two blonde women that had just left.　

She turned back to face her friends and found they were glancing between each other, stunned expressions on their faces. Silence reigned for what seemed like eternity afterward, as the other three occupants kept glancing between each other.　

"Well," Clara finally said at long last. "You’ve just met the Bitchy Duo."　

"The two women?"

"Yeah. Reinette Poisson and Cassandra O’Brien—queens of the school, and have been ever since we were little," Mickey added.

"And the man who just left is the new librarian," Rory chimed in, answering the question Rose was just about to ask. "He only started this year, and spends most of his time in the library. This is the first time he’s ever really gotten involved with student issues."　

"Very odd," Mickey stated, sounding as if he’d said that a hundred times before.　

"Yes, we know," Clara responded, lightly rolling her eyes.　

The two looked like they were about to bicker again, and Rose chose that moment to intervene as she could see Rory’s eyes becoming blank.　

"I’ll see you guys later," she told the three of them quickly, gathering her things. "I’m going to see if I can’t borrow some books from the library; at least until I can get some of my own."　

 _And maybe find out why the librarian as such an interest in me,_ she silently added as she left the courtyard.

　

~*~

 

　

The library was located towards the center of the entire campus, and connected to the main building that held the headmaster’s office and other important positions.　

Like Mr. Chesterton’s door, the double doors seemed to be make of oak, though they looked more worn and had small circular windows at the top.　

Pushing them open, the blonde took a sharp breath at the sight before her. The library looked _huge_. Everywhere she looked, there were books; stacked neatly on rows upon rows of shelves, and some were even overflowing onto the floor or were set on misplaced chairs.　

Paths were visible, illuminated by the sunlight filtering through the high windows on the farthest wall.　

Still stunned, Rose almost completely forgot her previous intentions as she wandered further into the room. She had always had a love of books, which had only grown in the past few years.　

Some of the books looked positively ancient—like something that should belong in a museum instead of a university library—while some looked brand new.　

Spotting a counter a few feet away, she reluctantly tore her gaze away from the books to see if she couldn’t find the librarian.　

After a thorough search without result, the young woman was in the process of turning away when a partially hidden book caught her eye. Beckoned by some unknown force she carefully removed the books obscuring it from view.　

The book was a heavy, ancient looking tome encased in leather. The pages were yellowed with age and looked extremely fragile, as is the gentlest of movements could cause them to tear.　

It was then that she saw the word ‘Vampyr’ embellished across the front in gold letters.　

Rose stepped away from the book as if burnt and whirled around to get out of the library as fast as possible when a Scottish voice made her freeze. "I wondered when you would show up."　

The blonde stayed rooted to her spot, a million questions running through her head, all leading to a conclusion she hoped wasn’t true. She refused to get dragged back into the Slayer life, by anyone.　

"Who are you?" She asked carefully, seeing if her suspicions were indeed true. Her gut told her they were, but a part of her still held on to the hope that they weren’t, that she could continue living a fairly normal, Slayer-free life.　

"John Noble," the man replied. "Your new Watcher," he added, as if it should be obvious.　

Her heart sank at his words. But, she wasn’t going to go back on her vow and give in that easily. "Sorry, wrong girl. I don’t know what you’re talking about," she said quickly in a last ditch effort.　

John Noble snorted, and Rose could faintly hear his footsteps as he walked down some sort of steps and headed in her direction. Turning around, the blonde found him standing only a few feet away, his back to a set of steps that led to a small balcony over the counter. "You and I both know that isn’t true," he stated.　

She quickly searched his face for any chance she could get away without admitting she was indeed the Slayer. Upon finding none, she felt her shoulders slump slightly in defeat before admitting, "I’m done being the Slayer. That part of my life is over."　

"Unless this is your ghost I’m speaking to, also not true," the Watcher said.　

"I’m done putting people I love in danger," she told him, becoming fed up with the conversation. Swallowing the emotion that rose up inside, she added, "I’m through being the reason people I care about die."　

With that, the young woman walked out of the library as fast as she dared, not once looking back. If she had, she would’ve seen the stunned look on John Noble’s face.

 

 

　

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So…what did you think? Continue or delete because it’s complete and utter crap?


	2. Mouth of Hell (Part II)

Chapter 2: Mouth of Hell (Part II)

_Of_ course _I can’t have a normal life for more than a few months,_ Rose thought as she rapidly put distance between her and the library and the unwelcome intrusion to a part of her life she’d rather forget.

Thankfully, she had the rest of the afternoon class-free so she could do whatever she pleased to forget what had just happened.

"I’m going to guess that it didn’t go over well," a voice commented beside her, making the blonde jump out of shock.

Turning around she found the speaker was Clara. "Is he always like that?" She asked as the two fell in step with each other.

The brunette woman shrugged. "Yeah, but after a bit you get used to it and realize he’s not truly all that bad," she answered. "Are you doing anything tonight?" She asked suddenly, halting in front of Rose forcing the other woman to stop suddenly.

"Er, no," she replied. _Except forget about today._

"You should come with us to the TARDIS tonight. It’s the local hangout downtown—a lot more fun than you would expect," Clara elaborated at the other woman’s utterly confused expression.

Rose had gone to quite a few clubs with her old mates back in London pre-Slayer calling and ended up having fun, even if the drunks sometimes ruined it. She hadn’t been expecting a town as small as Gallifrey to have one. "Sure," she replied.

Clara smiled widely at her. "You’ll love it," she promised as they exited the building and into the nearest courtyard.

As the two sat down at one of the tables—the same one they had at lunch, Rose noticed—and continued conversing, the blonde realized that the incident with John Noble in the library was all but faded from the forefront of her mind.

　

~*~ 　

　

Before Rose knew it she was arriving back at home. The brick house in front of her was still strange looking, but she supposed with time it become as home as her and her mum’s old flat.

"Rose?" Jackie’s voice called from the living room. The young woman could hear the sounds of the telly playing what sounded like a rerun of an East Enders episodes.

"Yeah?" She answered, making her way around the few unpacked boxes into the room.

"Nothin’. Just making sure it was you," the older woman replied. "How was your first day?" She added when Rose turned away to head to her room.

"Fine," she replied nonchalantly. It was true; despite finding out John Noble was assigned as her new Watcher and would no doubt try whatever he needed to drag her back into the Slayer life it had been a good day. She was especially happy to have found Rory, Mickey, and Clara; her first real friends since becoming the Slayer had ruined her previous ones.

Then, before her mother could suck her into watching whatever East Enders marathon she was watching, Rose quickly made her way down the hallway to what was now her bedroom.

The walls were still white—a contrast to the bright pink they had been at the old flat—and there was still possessions scattered all over, waiting to be put in their new places. Figuring she had some time before she had to meet her new friends, the blonde chose to spend it putting the objects away. It wasn’t much, but they still meant something to her.

In the process of trying to decide which of the few non-casual outfits she had would be most appropriate for a small-town club, her eyes were drawn to a decent sized old wooden chest in the very back of her closet.

The chest held all of her Slayer weapons—stakes, vials of holy water, crosses, and a few bulbs of garlic; all unused since the night of the fire.

Turning away Rose quickly decided to just change into a nicer version of what she was wearing since Clara hadn’t specified if a certain attire was required. Without knowing why, she found herself pulling the stake out of her bag and hiding it up the sleeve of her jacket. _Just a precaution,_ she told herself. _Especially since you know the librarian is really a Watcher. Them plus you usually equal vampires._

Calling a goodbye to Jackie, she walked into the sun’s dying rays, the first stars faintly appearing overhead. The spring air felt good, even if it became chillier as she got closer to the downtown area.

The blonde remained on high alert as the night got darker and she traveled further into the downtown area as a reflex. Not that she was expecting trouble, but she seemed to be a magnet for it if she was honest.

Music blaring soon reached her ears, and she followed it to a small building painted a dark blue sandwiched between a clothing and jewelry store. The paint was beginning to fade and the bricks seem chipped in places but it still looked fairly new. Above the double doors a sign in glowing white letters displayed ‘The TARDIS’.

Immediately, Rose knew this was the club Clara had been talking about. She briefly wondered what ‘TARDIS’ was supposed to mean as she entered the place, half surprised no one was there to make sure she was at least a certain age. _Unless it’s an all ages place,_ she mused.

The inside was what surprised her. A crowd of people covered the fairly large dance floor and tables were placed sporadically throughout the floor closest to the entrance. A bar ran the length of the farthest wall, and a small set of stairs led to a catwalk that surrounded the perimeter, where Rose could faintly see more tables.

Overall the inside seemed almost bigger than the outside led you to believe, almost exactly like what Clara had told her earlier in the day.

Scanning the sea of people in the building she finally spotted Clara sitting at the bar with Mickey beside her and Rory beside the other man. As she got closer she could tell they seemed to be in some sort of heated discussion, with Clara and Rory against Mickey.

"Rose, you made it!" Rory exclaimed, finally spotting her heading their way. Much to the blonde’s relief, they didn’t seem to be wearing anything fancy—even though Clara did change her previous outfit for a dress.

"It was a bit hard to find," she admitted, taking the free seat beside Clara.

"But nice, yeah?" Mickey asked.

"I wasn’t expecting…this," Rose said, gesturing at the interior.

"You get used to it," Rory told her.

"Drink?" Clara asked, holding a glass full of some clear liquid in a proffer. Taking it from the brunette, Rose took a small sip to find much to her surprise it was merely water. Noticing her expression, the other young woman elaborated, "I don’t really fancy having a potential hangover tomorrow. Makes it hard to concentrate on things."

"Thanks," the blonde said. Clara smiled in acknowledgement.

For the next couple of minutes, Rory, Mickey and Clara took turns grilling Rose on what she thought of Gallifrey in general and what it was like living in London.

"It’s different," she admitted. "But not bad."

"Give it time," Rory replied reassuringly.

Silence descended among the group for the next couple of songs, until Clara stood up suddenly. "I’m going to have some fun," she declared. "Anyone care to join?"

Rory shared a look with Mickey that Rose couldn’t decipher before getting up and joining the brunette in the sea of dancers. Soon both of them were lost from the blonde’s sight.

Turning back to the almost empty glass Clara had kindly given her, she finished the remainder and set the glass off to the side. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Mickey seem to wrestle with something before he got up and took Clara’s abandoned seat.

"So, uh, what exactly is London like? Living there, I mean," he asked after a few more beats of silence. The barely detectable tremor of nervousness didn’t go unnoticed on Rose.

"You’ve never been?"

The man shook his head in response. "Always wanted to, but never had the money," he said regretfully.

"I know the feeling," she replied softly, remembering all the dreams she’d had a child that were impossible because there just wasn’t enough money. Because of that she had always had a good work ethic from a young age; she may never have been the smartest nor brightest in school, but she did know the value of hard work. Which is why it had taken what it did for her to give up Slaying.

Pushing those thoughts from her mind, she chose to describe London to the young man next to her. "It’s very noisy—especially during the day, and crowded. You can’t really see any stars due to the lights, and in the area I grew up in you have to watch your back almost constantly," she began. "But it’s beautiful. And it has amazing chips," the blonde added, smiling at the last part. She’d always loved chips, but especially the ones from a chippy a few blocks from the Estates.

Mickey chuckled. "Of course it’s the chips."

"Really, they are!" Rose protested, unable to keep the smile—one of her own—off her face as she dissolved into laughter.

"I’ll have to introduce you to the ones they sell here, then," he replied once he had managed to stem his laughter. "Then we’ll see if the chips really are better."

"Alright," she agreed, barely registering that to the casual onlooker this may appear like flirting. That sent a jolt of shock through the young blonde. The last time she had really flirted with someone was back when she had first met Jimmy Stone—and _that_ was a time she preferred to erase from memory.

_But you’re just friends,_ she told herself, knowing that was true.

"So what are you majoring in?" Mickey asked. "If you have one, that is," he quickly added.

"Uh, visual art," she said. Painting had always been a passion of hers, and she figured if she was going to do something with her life why not something she loved? When she was called as a Slayer, she had almost chosen to drop out but Wilfred had convinced her otherwise. "You?" She asked quickly, before the lingering pain could resurface.

"Not quite sure," he admitted. "Nothing as like yours though. Me? I prefer something more mechanical or technological."

"That doesn’t sound bad," she said. "Much more likely to land you a job."

Mickey shrugged, and the two fell silent as each wondered what to say next. Rose let herself listen to the song playing—some new rock song she’d never heard before—and soon felt a tingle start at the base of her spine and creep upward.

She froze, recognizing it as her senses alerting to her to something _unnatural_ nearby. Vampire, demon, ghost; it didn’t matter. Whatever it was, it more than likely posed a threat to her and everyone in the club.

Turning around, she scanned the crowd of people for whatever was setting off her senses, and found the tingles increase when her gaze landed on two individuals heading out the door. One male, one female, and they both had someone of the opposite gender with them—people she quickly realized to her horror were Rory and Clara.

"I-I’ve got to go," she quickly stammered out, leaping up from her seat and blatantly pushing her way through the crowd, feeling her heart hammering. Her mind raced; how could she not have expected this? With a Watcher showing up before her, she should’ve known there was something off with this town.

Barely suppressed memories of Wilfred’s training sprung forth as she felt herself take up the mantle of the Slayer again—she may not want to do it, but when people, especially those she cared about even slightly, were in danger she wouldn’t hesitate to resume the role.

"Rose, wait. Where-?" She heard Mickey call out as he followed her out of the TARDIS and onto the deserted sidewalk, the crescent moon shining bright overhead as it tried to blot out the stars. Under different circumstances, she would’ve stopped to admire the view.

"Sorry, no time," she called over her shoulder as she picked up her pace. Vaguely, she was aware of Mickey continuing his pursuit but ignored it; Clara and Rory’s lives were far more important.

Rose realized she had no clear idea of where the vampires, demons, whatever would take Rory and Clara but she headed for the one place she had always been told was the best to check: the graveyard. The only problem was, Gallifrey seemed to have a lot of them.

"Why are you heading for the cemetery?" Mickey questioned as he finally caught up.

Biting back a sigh despite how much she enjoyed his company in general, she gave him an edited version of the events. "Those people Rory and Clara left with, they’re dangerous. There’s a chance they took them here."

"Shouldn’t we go to the police?"

"No time. Any time wasted is decreasing our chances of finding them alive," she replied, not hiding the seriousness from him.

The sound of screaming pierced the otherwise still night air, alerting her to the fact they were definitely in the right area At least, she hoped it was them as she tore off in the direction without preamble.

Graves and crypts flew past her as she continued to run full speed, her increased endurance keeping her going.

Too soon she came upon a tiny hill that led further down into the graveyard, dotted with trees in various shapes. She could barely make out the forms of Clara and Rory darting into a large crypt at the base, other figures quickly following.

Unsheathing the stake she was grateful she had brought along Rose slowed down as she approached the crypt, trying to form a plan of how best to get everyone out alive. She had only seen two or three figures go in there after her friends, which so far boded fairly well. It would be hard, but hopefully not unmanageable.

Thankfully Mickey seemed to pick up on her posture as he followed suit when he finally joined her and slowed down until he’d halted next to her. She noticed he was breathing fairly heavily.

He opened his mouth to ask something but Rose quickly made a motion for him to shush.

"…young too," an unidentified female voice from inside the crypt said. "Should be very good, don’t you agree?"

Her companion didn’t respond, but the blonde could imagine the expression on his face as he agreed. Judging by what little she was hearing, they were vampires. "Too easy though. Isn’t there supposed to be a Slayer protecting this town? The Watcher’s here," he said, and Rose took that as a cue to intervene.

"You heard right," she said, nipping whatever fear threatened to arise; fear was deadly, as she’d quickly found out. "Hold on," she added to Clara and Rory, who were backed into a corner with makeshift weapons in their hands, one of which she spotted as a piece of wood. _Hopefully sharp enough to be used as a stake,_ she thought.

"I really hate Slayers," the male vampire said as his face transformed into that of his vampire visage. The eyes turned a bright gold and fangs elongated from the upper jaw—overall the face of nightmares.

"Uh, Rose," Mickey managed to get out behind her just as the vampire launched himself at her.

Using her training, the blonde jumped out of the way at the last possible moment and quickly delivered a kick to the vampires knee, taking him by surprise, which she used to drive the stake through where his heart was without a second’s hesitation. The body burst into a million minuscule dust particles, which floated carelessly to the ground.

Silence followed, and Rose could feel four pairs of eyes staring at her. Three with incomprehension and shock, and the other morphing into pure rage.

The other vampire let out a shout of rage as her face transformed and she leapt at the blonde. Unfortunately her rage was her downfall, as it gave Rose a fairly easy access to her heart.

Without waiting for the dust to fully settle, the young blonde quickly sheathed her stake and headed for Rory and Clara, who had yet to move from their spots.

"They didn’t hurt you, right?" She asked, scanning them over and finding that they showed no bite marks as far as she could see.

"What were they?" Clara demanded.

"Later," Rose replied, coming to the realization that after tonight she wouldn’t be able to hide her secret from her friends. Nor continue not being the Slayer, as it was shaping up to be. "We need to get out of here first. Come on," she added, turning and quickly heading out of the crypt, past Mickey whose eyes followed her relentlessly.

She broke out into a jog when she was sure the others were following, only to skid to a halt when her eyes picked up figures heading towards them, figures she instinctively knew had to be more vampires. _Where there’s one, there’s many,_ she thought, letting her stake slide into her hand.

"What-?" She heard someone say behind her as the others skidded to a halt behind her. Sparing a quick glance backwards she saw that the piece of wood was still in Rory’s possession.

Doing a quick head count, Rose estimated there to be at least eight or ten vampires advancing towards them. Almost the same amount as the ones she had taken on at her old university—and she had only managed that by Wilfred’s sacrifice and fire.

While the chance of coming out of this alive was slim, if she ran now with the others there was a very good chance none of them would make it out of the graveyard, and innocents were always the top priority—something she’d always agreed with Wilfred on.

Scanning the vampires for a opening big enough that Clara, Rory, and Mickey could get away as safely as possible, the blonde spotted one that would hopefully lead them to a secondary exit. "Run, now," she told her them, blatantly pushing them in the direction. "And don’t hesitate to use that," she added, pointing to the piece of wood in Rory’s hand.

"What about you?" He asked, his worry reflected in the other two’s gazes.

"I’ll be fine," she said, hoping that somehow she could uphold that promise. "Now go!"

With only one brief glance at her, they did as she asked. Not tearing her gaze away from the vampires, she began accessing what the best strategy would be. So far she knew she had to take a risk and protect her back to avoid being caught off guard.

Knowing that was one of her best options, she began backing up until her back hit the wall of the same crypt she had just left, gripping her stake tighter and letting her senses fully extend to take everything in.

Apparently this must have been some sort of sign because one of the vampires suddenly raced at her, causing her to quickly stab upwards and hope she hit the heart. The feeling of dust told her she had gotten lucky.

Rose barely had time to recollect herself before the remaining vampires raced at her, with her escape routes rapidly closing. Doing her best to keep the panic from rising up inside her she found herself dropping into a defensive position, rising up her stake and—having her suspicion that she wouldn’t get out of this alive—vowed to take out as many as she could.

A hand came out of what seemed what like nowhere and, grabbing her free hand, yanked her out of the way.

"Run," the owner said, dragging her behind him as he took off running before the blonde could do anything.

Logic told her to break free of the strange man’s grip, but her survival instinct won out and she began running alongside her rescuer. As they made a beeline for the nearest exit, she found herself glancing beside her to get a better look at the stranger. All she could tell was he wore a black leather jacket.

Neither slowed down until after they had passed the archway leading to the rest of town.

Knowing they were safely away from the vampires for the moment, Rose pulled her hand out of the stranger’s grasp, causing him to turn towards her, allowing her to get her first real glimpse from the nearby street lamp.

The man had dark brown hair cut close to military style and ears that were slightly larger than average. His ice blue eyes regarded her with an indescribable expression. "You know, when I think of Slayers, the last thing I think of is suicidal," he remarked.

The word ‘Slayer’ coming from him halted any further scrutiny of him from the blonde. "How do you know that?" She demanded.

He shrugged. "Wasn’t hard to tell," he said, clearly avoiding giving her a real answer. "Care to explain why you thought taking on a group of vampires by yourself with only a stake was a good idea?"

"I was buying my friends time," she replied, feeling the need to defend herself to this stranger.　

"Because leaving them to run through a graveyard populated by the undead is a _fantastic_ way to ensure their safety," the stranger muttered.　

"What else was I supposed to do?!" Rose argued hotly. "Let them be picked off one by one while I tried and failed to stop the vampires?"

"No, I suppose not," the man answered. "But it _still_ was suicidal, what you did."　

The blonde gave up on trying to explain herself to this stranger. "Was there a reason you were wandering in a graveyard in the middle of the night?"　

"I was hoping to come across you," the man replied. "There’s something you need to know, about this town: you, and it, are standing on the mouth of Hell. And it’s going to open unless you can stop the Harvest."　

Rose felt chills shoot down her spine at the dark haired man’s words. They sounded way too prophetic for her to be comfortable. "How do you know so bloody much?" She demanded, swallowing the fear his ominous words brought—even if she hadn’t the faintest idea what they meant.　

"I have my ways," he said cryptically, turning and beginning to walk away. Rose shot one last question at him.　

"Who are you?"　

He paused. "A friend."

And with that, he disappeared, leaving a very confused Slayer behind.

　

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just realized I’m kind of blending Nine and Rose’s meeting in ‘Rose’ with Angel and Buffy’s in ‘Welcome to the Hellmouth’…and so far I’m happy with the result. What did you guys think? Good, bad, etc.?


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